I'm going to have a lot of fun with this thing (video)

[Summerpaws]

Phantom 3 Standard. Hours of YouTube video's. Lots of flight simulator time and some short flights to get acquainted with the aircraft. Finally the weather cooperated enough to bring the bird to a friends campground where I practiced some of the maneuvers I'll need to use while filming moving subjects. I recorded 6 minutes and because it was boring, put it to music.
Winds were light out of the west at 10 to 12 knots
Max altitude 200 ft.

I am blown away at the stability of the platform. You could hear the rotors speeding up and slowing down as the copter did it's station keeping yet the video is rock solid.

I can't wait to get good at this.

 

[CrispyClaret]

Fun isn't it?
Try not to look at your phone screen too much when she is flying close by or near those nasty tree beasties. Phone is useful for seeing how camera is pointed and when at a distance it will greatly help with seeing how close to hitting objects you are. Because of the angle of view, just remember Jurassic Park, objects really are closer than they look on screen.

 

[Summerpaws]

Fun isn't it?
Try not to look at your phone screen too much when she is flying close by or near those nasty tree beasties. Phone is useful for seeing how camera is pointed and when at a distance it will greatly help with seeing how close to hitting objects you are. Because of the angle of view, just remember Jurassic Park, objects really are closer than they look on screen.

You noticed that, huh? Thanks for the tip. You're right, of course. I should know that after watching a few of the video's taken by crashed 'copters. At this point I am just trying to build muscle memory and advice like this helps.

 

[CrispyClaret]

I noticed and recognised my own bad habits

 

[ob1415]

I LOVE flying my P3S. I've always been fascinated with flying and this is the closest I've been or probably ever will be. I've also always been interested in photography so this platform has really gotten my attention.

 

[Summerpaws]

I do a lot of photography. I specialize in dogs, most notably golden retrievers. I was at a dock diving competition last summer where there was no good vantage point for a side-on picture and I wished for a camera drone to grab some good shots. My wife heard me and mentioned it to my kids and voila, my P3 showed up! I hope to get some good action shots as well as video. That's why I am practicing flying sideways. If I really like this and get good at it, I may have to upgrade to a 'copter that I can select my subject and the drone will follow it. (Not sure if I trust the control systems that are out there yet) So far, I love what I see!

 

[Darren Roach]

Its very addictive

 

[ob1415]

I do a lot of photography. I specialize in dogs, most notably golden retrievers. I was at a dock diving competition last summer where there was no good vantage point for a side-on picture and I wished for a camera drone to grab some good shots. My wife heard me and mentioned it to my kids and voila, my P3 showed up! I hope to get some good action shots as well as video. That's why I am practicing flying sideways. If I really like this and get good at it, I may have to upgrade to a 'copter that I can select my subject and the drone will follow it. (Not sure if I trust the control systems that are out there yet) So far, I love what I see!

There is a 3rd party app called Litchi that integrates some of the new tech from the P4 in to their software that allows you to do some of the autonomous flight modes such as the Follow, Waypoint Missions, etc. I haven't tried them yet myslef, because I, like you, am still somewhat sceptical in trusting the computer to fly my bird.

 

[TiminSac]

Phantom 3 Standard. Hours of YouTube video's. Lots of flight simulator time and some short flights to get acquainted with the aircraft. Finally the weather cooperated enough to bring the bird to a friends campground where I practiced some of the maneuvers I'll need to use while filming moving subjects. I recorded 6 minutes and because it was boring, put it to music.
Winds were light out of the west at 10 to 12 knots
Max altitude 200 ft.

I am blown away at the stability of the platform. You could hear the rotors speeding up and slowing down as the copter did it's station keeping yet the video is rock solid.

I can't wait to get good at this.

After watching your video, your already good at it. That's the cool thing about the P3S, it is so easy to operate.

 

[CrispyClaret]

My wife heard me and mentioned it to my kids and voila, my P3 showed up!

Mmmmm, so what suitable gifts are they hoping for in return?

 

[Summerpaws]

There is a 3rd party app called Litchi that integrates some of the new tech from the P4 in to their software that allows you to do some of the autonomous flight modes such as the Follow, Waypoint Missions, etc. I haven't tried them yet myslef, because I, like you, am still somewhat sceptical in trusting the computer to fly my bird.

From what I've read, the use of a third party app will void my warrantee with DJI. (Am I right?) I figured waiting until it's out of warrantee will do two things. One, I will be so much better operating the aircraft, and second, the bugs will be out of the app and I'll have a better feel for how good it is.

 

[Summerpaws]

Mmmmm, so what suitable gifts are they hoping for in return?

My oldest is 44, the next is 42, and my baby is 39. I figured they owe me for everything I've given them

 

[Summerpaws]

After watching your video, your already good at it. That's the cool thing about the P3S, it is so easy to operate.

Absolutely. I have flown RC airplanes (Kinda hard) for a few years. I've had two RC helicopters (Extremely hard) and recently, a cheap camera drone. None of these flew themselves and all but the airplanes were really hurt by any sort of wind, especially the cheap camera drone. Flying this is so easy, even on a breezy day, that I have to laugh. It's awesome.